News for September 24th 2010

Thousands expected for bike races at Barber near Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast

 College football won’t be the only sport with a huge following this weekend.

Motorcycle enthusiasts will get their fix when Barber Motorsports Park hosts a series of races for the AMA Pro Superbike Championship.

Forty-thousand fans are expected to attend and bring a large economic impact to the area.

It’s a season-ending event. So there’s a lot more interest in these races.

Locals and tourists are expected to generate more than $12 million into the local economy. Tickets have been sold in more than 30 states for this event. Most of the out of town fans will arrive Friday. “I love watching it. The sound of it is exciting. The people…. everyone here with a common thing …we all enjoy makes it fun,” said Chad Jatko.

The manager of Hampton Inn in Leeds, Patrick Brankin, said, “We had a really slow summer being a brand new hotel in a kind of struggling economy. It’s a huge weekend. We are going to sell-out actually two of the next three weekends just because of events at Barber.”

Qualifying is Friday and races are Saturday and Sunday.
      
Two series champions could be crowned this weekend and that’s what the fans want to see.

Edited: September 24th, 2010

Honda signs on as sponsor of the Grand Prix of Alabama

From the article “American Honda signs on as Grand Prix of Alabama sponsor” by Ben Piper in the Birmingham Business Journal:

The Grand Prix of Alabama will be sponsored by American Honda from 2011 through 2013 organizers said. The Indy Car event, which will be held on April 8-10, 2011, will enter its second year at the Barber Motorsports Park located outside of Birmingham in Leeds. Bruno Event Team CEO Gene Hallman said the Honda Grand Prix of Alabama- originally slated to run through 2012- has also been extended through 2013. Hallman said the 2011 Grand Prix will be held one week before a NASCAR event at Talladega Superspeedway on April 17, to create a “speed week.” Terms of the three-year deal with Honda were not disclosed. The Grand Prix of Alabama was presented by Legacy Credit Union in 2010 – a race that drew 84,000 spectators. Hallman said going with Honda – a known national brand that operates a plant in Lincoln – also provides momentum for the event. “It will be a tremendous boost to the event and will also allow the state of Alabama to more widely tout the success that Honda has seen with its manufacturing facility,” he said. “The brand certainly brings some prestige to the event and when you combine that with what they will be doing at the dealerships, the benefits are tremendous.”

Hallman said having a national sponsor back the event should encourage local businesses to get more involved with the Grand Prix of Alabama. Legacy Credit Union is also still a sponsor. “What it shows to the local corporate community is that one of the fellow corporate citizens is stepping up and supporting an event in our backyard,” he said. “I think that will create some momentum for local companies to jump on board as well.” Darin White, sports business and marketing professor at Samford University, said consumers could transfer positive experiences with Honda to the Grand Prix event – one positive for the sponsorship signing. “Having a major national sponsor for a local sporting event clearly communicates value and the importance of the event beyond just the local market,” he said. “From a marketing perception standpoint, a sponsor like Honda will help that event develop certain positive attributes in the minds of potential spectators.” White said the three-year length of the sponsorship is fairly standard. He said it also opens the door for more national sponsors to bid for the event in the future if the event goes off well. Promoting races at Barber Motor Sports Park and Talladega Superspeedway should push attendance at both events, White said. “It should help both events, because there will be some spectators who will stay the entire week, which is a boost to the economy,” he said. “It seems like a win-win for Talladega and Barber. Those are two very different target markets, however, so there is some cross over in the target audiences.”
Birmingham Airport receives $14.3 million grant
From the article “BHM receives $14.3M grant for terminal project” by Aneesa McMillan in the Birmingham Business Journal:

The Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport was awarded a $14.3 million grant to be used in the ongoing Terminal Modernization Project. The grant was issued by the Department of Homeland Security through the Transportation Security Administration. According to a release issued by the airport, the funds will be used to install a new baggage handling system. The total cost of the system was more than $15 million, however the TSA agreed to cover 95 percent of the costs through the grant. “This funding amount speaks to the confidence that the TSA has displayed in support of this project,” said BHM president and CEO Al Denson. “We sincerely thank the TSA official and our congressional delegation.” This is the second grant awarded to the facility this week after it was announced Tuesday that the Federal Aviation Administration awarded BHM an additional grant that totaled more than $1.8 million for the airport’s airfield maintenance and development.

For the complete article please see http://www.bizjournals.com/birmingham/stories/2010/09/13/daily40.html?ana=e_du_pub

Shelby County movie producers filming their first feature
From the article “Erwin Brothers keep first feature film local by Katie Hurst in the Shelby County Reporter:

Shelby County’s local movie-making brothers are hard at work on the production of their first feature film, “October Baby.” Jon and Andy Erwin, of Erwin Brothers Motion Pictures out of Calera, have been filming around the county this month. Scenes have been shot in Helena, the Birmingham airport, St. Paul’s cathedral in downtown Birmingham and Mobile. The film’s co-producer, Dan Atchison of Helena, said the crew has been doubling up on scene locations. Alabaster’s Barron Fan Technologies acted as the set for both a scene at a mechanic’s shop and a scene that takes place in a junkyard. “It keeps us from driving all over town,” he said. “It saves time, it saves money. It’s all smoke and mirrors.” It’s no accident that the brothers chose to film in their home state, Atchison said. Keeping the film local was intentional. “We wanted to shoot our first feature film here,” he said. “Alabama is a beautiful state. We hope to attract more films here. It’s good for the economy, it’s really good for our state.”

Thanks to the Alabama film incentives that were approved in July, the company will receive a 25 percent rebate on production expenses over $500,000. It gives the film a 25 percent larger budget and it keeps jobs and money in the state, Atchison said. Much of the crew and cast are also from Alabama, including the film’s lead actress, Rachel Hendrix. Other familiar cast names include Chris Sligh, Nashville-based American Idol contestant and John Schneider from the TV show, “Smallville” and the original “Dukes of Hazzard.” The movie follows the story of a college-aged girl who finds out she’s adopted and searches out her birth mother. It’s a coming-of-age story about recovering from a painful past and finding forgiveness, Atchison said.“We hope it will cause people to think about the relationships in their lives,” he said. “But it will entertain first and foremost. The Birmingham area is the perfect place for filming because of the diversity between big city, country and old small towns, Atchison said. “Birmingham really plays any town U.S.A., you can make it anywhere,” he said. “It’s a great place to shoot.” The film will be in post-production for at least three months before touring at festivals, Atchison said. The goal is for a big distributor to pick it up and put the film in theaters spring of 2012. If they meet that goal, the company would like to premiere the film like they produced it – locally, Atchison said.

For the complete article please see http://www.shelbycountyreporter.com/2010/09/13/erwin-brothers-keep-first-feature-film-local/ 

Edited: September 24th, 2010